WOODS AND PLANTATIONS. 393 



have always advocated and adopted the plan of checking these branches 

 by pinching a small portion off the end with the finger and thumb. 



During the summer of 1867 I had a number of Wellingtonia sequoia 

 in my garden from a foot to five feet high. Many of these I found, 

 in the month of May, with two, three, or four shoots striving for the 

 lead. Some I checked by pinching off about half an inch from the 

 top, others I cut off altogether with a knife, and left a few untouched. 

 I examined them from time to time during the summer, and in the 

 month of October I found those which had been shortened by pinching 

 the shoots had made an average growth of sixteen inches ; those which 

 had been cut with the knife had made an average growth of seven inches, 

 and the cuts were partly fresh ; while those which had been left un- 

 touched had all grown slowly together, and had not on the average made 

 more than four inches, thus proving in favour of the plan of pinching 

 with the finger and thumb. 



Coniferous trees should, however, be pruned of all dead branches on 

 their stems. We very often find larch and Scots pine trees especially 

 growing with a number of dead branches on their stems, which the bark 

 and growing timber gradually cover into the trunk of the tree, and thus 

 spoil the quality of the timber. All these dead branches should be 

 removed as they die, and the result will be an improvement of the 

 timber. 



The implements we employ for pruning operations are the pruning- 

 knife, saws, and chisel. 



The knife which I use is that made by Saynor, and it is found very 

 useful in cutting off the lower branches, such as a man can reach. 



In cutting off a branch at the stem with a knife, the pruner takes 

 hold of the branch in his left hand and slightly lifts it up. Where the 

 tree is not large, the pruner stands with the stem of the tree in front of 

 him, having the branch which is to be cut on the opposite side, and at 

 the same time he lifts the branch with the left hand ; then he cuts it 

 across with the knife in the other, entering the knife on the low side of 

 the branch, and cutting upwards, taking care not to enter the stem of 



the tree, but merely to get the branch off 



.,, * FIG. 113. 



without making a larger wound on the 



stem than the base of the root of the 

 branch covers. 



Branches which are too large to be cut 

 with the knife will require a hand-saw such as is represented iu fig. 

 113. This is useful for the operation while standing on the ground; but 

 before sawing a branch with this, the under part should be cut about 

 half an inch, to prevent splitting when the branch falls off. 



